The Wraith of Hogwarts
by Healer Pomfrey
Summary: One evening, Arabella Figg requests help from Hogwarts for a five-year-old Harry Potter, who can neither be seen nor heard by anyone. Completely AU, partly OOC, set before Hogwarts, mentioning of abuse!Durleys
1. Chapter 1

**The Wraith of Hogwarts**  
**by Healer Pomfrey**

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

* * *

Arabella Figg looked at the clock on the mantelpiece in surprise. _'Nine o'clock,'_ she realised. _'Who'd ring the bell at this time in the evening? I hope nothing happened to any of my cats.'_ In utmost concern, she rose from her favourite spot on the sofa and went to open the door, only to realise that she could not see anyone outside. Privet Drive was lying in the dark, as quiet and boring as any other evening.

She was just about to shut the door, feeling extremely annoyed at the unnecessary disturbance, when she felt an invisible figure quietly press inside and behind herself. _'Harry,'_ she realised, immediately.

Since the fatal Halloween four years ago, when Harry Potter had been taken to the Dursley family, she had been responsible for the child on order of the great Albus Dumbledore. Of course the Dursleys were completely unaware of the matter; however, they happily accepted the fact that there was someone who willingly took the freak in - as they used to call him - whenever they wanted to get rid of him. At first, Harry had appeared to her like a normal baby, except for the fact that his magic seemed to be extremely powerful and he talked exceptionally well for a fifteen-months-old. However, a while into his stay with the Dursleys - if Arabella remembered correctly, it had been about the time of his third birthday -, he had suddenly become invisible. According to Petunia Dursley, she did not know how it happened, but from one moment to the next no one was able to see or hear Harry anymore.

Arabella could feel the boy. She could take him by the hand when she went for a walk with the little tyke or took him into the garden to play with her cats; however, he remained invisible and silent all the time.

"Harry, what happened?" Arabella asked in a kind voice. Apart from the fact that it was unnerving to speak with someone who was invisible and never replied, she really liked the boy and knew that he was not stupid at all. He had his own ways to express himself like for example when he helped with washing up after meals, cleaning the cat toilet or giving the cats their food. He also sometimes wrote small words on his paper, when she encouraged him to draw a picture.

She gently reached out for the boy, knowing that she had to be careful in order for him to not flinch back, startled. To her relief, he did not flinch; however, when she gently caressed his cheek, she realised that it felt hot to the touch and at the same time wet as if the child was crying without making sounds. _'What can I do?'_ she wondered. _'Maybe he's ill or hurt. Who knows what his relatives might have done to him that he comes here at this time of the evening. He should be asleep,'_ she thought. She carefully led the five-year-old into the living room and made him lie down on the sofa, where she gently covered him with a warm blanket.

Seeing from the movements of the cover that the boy seemed to be shivering, she decided to ask for help. "Hold on Harry," she said, gently. "I'm going to call someone who will be able to help you." With that she knelt in front of the fireplace and shouted, "Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster's office, Hogwarts."

HP

Albus Dumbledore was just enjoying tea together with his four Heads of House, when the fireplace flared and Arabella Figg's face appeared in the flames.

"Hello Arabella, is something with Harry?" Minerva asked immediately, giving the Squib a worried look.

"Yes," Mrs. Figg replied. "It's not only that the boy is still invisible and I'm worrying how he's going to get along when he'll finally start primary school next summer, but he just came to me a few minutes ago, and I think that he's either sick or injured, but since I can't see or hear him, I can't help him at all. Albus, can you please send someone to check on the child?"

"I'll go," Minerva spoke up in determination, raising from her seat.

"No," Albus said in a firm voice, before he turned to his most trusted male colleague. "Severus, will you please go to Arabella's house and check on little Harry?"

The Potions Master stared at him in disbelief. "Why would I go and check on a Potter?" he queried, spatting the name.

"Because you won't be willing to bring him to Hogwarts just because the boy doesn't like it at his relatives' home," Albus replied in a no-nonsense voice.

"Because he's your best friend's son," Minerva threw in, seemingly angered. "Come Severus, let's go together then."

"Very well," Albus agreed, however, instructed the two to not bring the boy to Hogwarts if not absolutely necessary. "He needs to live with his relatives because of the blood wards," he insisted in a firm voice.

"If he's invisible, we'll be well able to protect him here," Minerva uttered, before she followed Severus into the fireplace.

_'Well that might be,'_ the Headmaster mused, _'but I prefer for him to grow up far from the magical world, let alone Hogwarts.'_

HP

Harry Potter was quietly laying on Mrs. Figg's sofa, feeling slightly relieved that the cat lady seemed to have comprehended that he was in need of help. While she was waiting in front of the fireplace, his thoughts returned to the house of his relatives.

_**Flashback - one hour earlier**_

Five-year-old Harry was cooking dinner for the Dursleys, as usual, when he suddenly realised, horrified, that he had accidentally burned the sausages. They did not have their usual brown colour but were outright black on all sides. He was just about to summon his wish magic - something that he had been able to do for a long time - in order to wish them unburned and brown, when Aunt Petunia looked into the fry pan.

"You stupid freak," she shouted and hit him with the hot fry pan. Although she was not able to see him, she did not fail her aim and managed to hit him on the head, causing his head to become very sore.

His uncle shouted something at him, but in an attempt to get away from his aunt he missed the words, and then his uncle grabbed his arm and threw him into his cupboard, not caring that Harry crashed against the wall.

One could not say that he wasn't used to pain. However, his whole body flared in pain, and for the first time in his life he had problems breathing, which caused him to become very scared. Knowing that his relatives were now sitting in the kitchen having dinner instead of paying attention to him, he turned back to his cupboard door and wished it open, before he quietly dragged himself out of the house. _'I hope the cat lady will be willing to help me,'_ he thought, knowing that the cat lady, as he called his babysitter who possessed many cats, was much nicer and understanding than his relatives.

_End of flashback_

Harry wearily noticed that a man stepped out of the fireplace, followed by an older woman. Both were dressed in strange clothes. _'An adult man in a black one-piece,'_ he realised, feeling too miserable to further ponder the matter.

"Where's Potter and what exactly is wrong with him?" the man asked, seemingly impatiently.

"He's lying there on the sofa," Mrs. Figg informed her guests.

"Leave it to a Potter to attract attention by making himself invisible," the black man sneered, before he pulled a stick out of a pocket in his one-piece and pointed it at Harry.

_'What's he doing?'_ Harry thought, terrified, and if he hadn't been feeling too sore and sick to move, he'd have hurried to move to a safe spot.

"Minerva, call Poppy. He's running a temperature of more than forty degrees, but since I can't see or hear him, I'm not able to assess anything else," the black man spoke up again in a friendlier voice, causing the woman in the green one-piece to kneel down in front of the fireplace like Mrs. Figg had done earlier.

All of a sudden, a soft voice penetrated his mind. 'Mr. Potter, is there a reason why you're invisible? We'd be much more able to help you if we could assess what's ailing you.'

_'He sounds nice,'_ Harry thought, wondering, _'Is that the man in the black one-piece? He said he wants to help me.'_ Before he could further ponder the matter, he felt himself wish to think back to the friendly man.

'I'm a freak, and freaks mustn't be seen or heard,' he thought back, causing the tall, black man to stare at him in disbelief.

"You're not a freak," the man informed him in a firm voice. "You're a wizard like myself and apparently a very powerful at that. Now tell me what's ailing you. Does anything hurt?"

Harry remained quiet, knowing better than to complain, let alone aloud. Apparently, the man was able to understand his silence, because he repeated his question, telepathically.

'Everything,' Harry thought back, unsure what he should tell the man. _'I'm a wizard?'_ he thought in disbelief, just when another lady in a white one-piece came out of the fireplace.

The tall wizard informed the others what Harry had told him, causing the women to stare at him in apparent shock.

"Harry, you're not a freak. You're a very good boy," the cat lady said, reassuringly.

"Yes, and we love you very much," the woman in the green one-piece added, before the woman in the white one-piece interrupted her.

"Harry, I'm going to cast a diagnostic spell at you," she said in a soft voice. "It would make it easier if you could turn visible though."

_'No, I can't do that,'_ his mind screamed, and Harry observed how the woman waved her stick over him multiple times.

"Misty," the woman suddenly called out, and within an instant, a strange creature appeared right in front of her. "Misty I need several potions," she informed the creature and listed multiple items, which sounded too strange to Harry to understand anything.

He saw the creature nod and disappear, only to reappear again a moment later. _'Are they wizards too?'_ he wondered but knew better than to transfer his thoughts to the black man, who was sitting in a chair watching the scene like the woman in the green one-piece and the cat lady.

He barely noticed that the white lady again waved her stick over him, but suddenly, he realised that he felt much better.

"I think I got him stabilized for now," the white lady finally spoke up. "He had a slight concussion along with several broken ribs, one of which was puncturing his lungs. I hope that it didn't do too much harm to his lungs, but it's difficult to diagnose if I'm not able to hear his breathing."

'Harry, who did that to you?' the black man's voice penetrated his mind. 'Who caused your ribs to break?'

_'I'm not allowed to tell,'_ Harry thought, remembering that Aunt Petunia had told him not only that he wasn't allowed to complain but also that he mustn't tell the cat lady how he got his various injuries, bruises and welts. _'But they're so nice and helped me,'_ he thought, before he finally decided to reply. 'My uncle,' he thought back to the man.

'What happened exactly?' the man queried, quirking an eyebrow at him. 'Please tell me.'

'I accidentally burned dinner, and my aunt got upset and hit me on the head with the fry pan, and then my uncle threw me back into my cupboard and I hit the wall,' Harry explained to the man, anxiously staring into onyx eyes.

'All right Harry, thank you for telling me,' the man replied in a soothing voice.

"Mr. Potter has been abused by his relatives," the man said to his colleagues. "I suggest that we take him to Hogwarts, especially since he probably needs to be in Poppy's care for a little while."

"Yes," the white lady replied, nodding her agreement.

"What exactly happened to Harry?" the green lady enquired in what seemed to be a concerned voice, causing the man to explain what Harry had told him.

'Harry, do you want to return to your relatives?' the man asked him.

'No,' Harry replied quickly.

"Very well, then we're going to take you with us to the school, where we're working. It's a boarding school for witches and wizards from the age of eleven onwards. I hope the Headmaster will allow you to remain with us," the man informed him, causing Harry to think back a small 'Thank you.'

HP

The lady in the white one-piece pulled a chain out from under her one-piece and carefully laid Harry's hand around the pendant that was attached to it. _'Is that a squirrel?'_ Harry wondered, while the lady instructed the others to come to see them in the hospital wing. Before Harry knew what happened, he felt a strange pull behind his navel, and the cat lady's living room vanished from his view.

The next thing he knew was that he found himself in a very large room, equipped with many beds. The lady in the white one-piece helped himself into the nearest bed and instructed him to lie down.

"Hello Harry," she then said in a friendly voice. "I'm Poppy Pomfrey, the Healer at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You're here in the hospital wing."

The name 'Aunt Poppy' came into Harry's mind and felt strangely familiar. _'Mummy brought me here when I was ill,'_ he suddenly remembered, and a small smile played on his lips that unfortunately remained unseen by the adults, who just gathered around his bed.

"Harry, these are my colleagues Professor McGonagall," Aunt Poppy explained, pointing to the lady in the green one-piece, "and Professor Snape." She pointed to the man in the black one-piece. "And here comes our Headmaster, Professor Dumbledore," she added, when a very old man in a baby blue one-piece came around the corner.

"What does this mean?" the Headmaster queried, sounding very stern.

"Albus, Mr. Potter has been abused by his relatives, verbally as well as physically," Professor Snape addressed the Headmaster.

"That means you brought him here?" the Headmaster asked in an equally strict voice as before. He stared at Harry's bed, only noticing from the curves in the bed covers that a small boy was occupying the bed.

"Yes, it was necessary," Poppy informed him and listed Harry's earlier injuries to the old wizard.

"Very well," Dumbledore replied, nodding in understanding. "Harry may stay here overnight then; however, I shall take him back to his relatives in the morning."

Completely unaware of the fact that the Headmaster's three colleagues began an immediate verbal fight with the Headmaster, Harry quietly scrambled out of the bed.

Only when the door of the hospital wing shut with a bang and no one came into the room did the adults notice that the invisible, small bundle had vanished from under his covers.

_tbc... _


	2. Chapter 2

**The Wraith of Hogwarts**  
**by Healer Pomfrey**

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

* * *

Three pairs of eyes glared at Dumbledore. "Headmaster, you must not disturb let alone upset my patients in such a way," Pomfrey was the first to scold the old wizard.

"Albus," Snape threw in, "you cannot send an abused child back to his family. I know that you did the same with myself, but at this time, Minerva, Poppy and I won't tolerate it."

"Exactly," the Scottish Lioness agreed immediately. "Harry has always been like a grandchild to me, and I'd love to take him in and raise him at Hogwarts."

Dumbledore shook his head, turning to the Potions Master. "I'm sorry my boy that I failed you so. Had I known how your father treated you..."

"Albus, you knew," Pomfrey contradicted in an upset voice. "I informed you about the matter."

The Headmaster sighed in defeat, knowing that if his three best friends were sworn together against himself, there was nothing that he could do about it. "Very well then, you may keep Harry here; however, I insist that Severus must become his guardian."

"No way," the Slytherin replied, scowling at the Headmaster. "Even if invisible, he's still a Potter."

McGonagall let out a long sigh. "You're both behaving like toddlers," she scolded her male colleagues. "Albus, may Severus and I both become his guardians? Please?"

"That's a wonderful idea," Pomfrey immediately concurred with her best friend. "Albus, I suggest that you instruct the house-elves to make a room for him and let them connect it with both Minerva's and Severus' quarters. If possible not far from here, so that I can easily look after him if necessary." Seeing that the Headmaster gave her a questioning look, she added, "As I said earlier, I can't assess the possible harm that might have been done to his lungs. I expect that he might be going to have problems."

Dumbledore merely nodded and called his house-elf. "Twinkle."

The elf popped up within instants, bowed and asked, "What can Twinkle to for Master Albus?"

"Twinkle, will the elves be able to find an invisible child within Hogwarts?" the Headmaster queried.

Twinkle bowed again, before he answered, "If the child wishes to remain invisible to the elves, we won't be able to see the child."

"Thank you Twinkle," Dumbledore replied and instructed the elf to make the room for Harry opposite of the hospital wing.

The Healer and the three professors decided to lock the entrance doors for the time being, so that Harry at least would be unable to leave Hogwarts. Other than that, the Headmaster would ask Fawkes if he could find Harry, while McGonagall was going to ask the paintings to report to her if they noticed anything out of the usual order, and Severus decided to try contacting the child through telepathy. With that they all left to their specific directions.

HP

_'Much ado about nothing,'_ Severus thought when he left the hospital wing and checked the new room, which the house-elves had already made for Harry. He deemed the room adequate and used the connecting door into his own quarters, smirking at the agreeable shortcut.

'Harry, child, where are you?' he addressed the boy in a soft voice. 'You don't have to worry, the Headmaster agreed that you may stay here at Hogwarts,' he added. However, the boy did not reply.

Severus sighed, as he lowered himself into his favourite armchair next to the fireplace. _'Maybe Cicero is able to help even if the Headmaster's elf isn't,'_ he thought and called his personal house-elf.

An instant later, Cicero popped up in front of him, giving him an expectant look. Severus swiftly told the elf everything that he knew about his new ward, before he asked, "Cicero, do you think you'd be able to find the child even if he's invisible?"

The relatively tall elf remained quiet for a moment, before he replied, pensively, "I'm not sure, Master Severus. Probably not. However, I'll get together with Misty and Malcolm and we'll see if there's anything that we can do."

_'Of course... Misty and Malcolm are the only other elves who are not bond to the Headmaster,'_ Severus mused. Since Misty was Poppy's personal elf, he knew her quite well, and Malcolm, Minerva's elf, he had seen a few times but had never spoken to him so far.

HP

Harry hurried away from the hospital wing, not knowing where exactly he was heading. _'I will not return to the Dursleys','_ he thought in determination. _'Rather than that I'm going to hide here until I'll be old enough to attend this school. Hiding in a school can't be worse than living in my cupboard with Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon and Dudley nearby.'_

Suddenly, he became aware of the fact that the people in the paintings along the wall were moving and talking to each other. _'Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon were wrong,'_ he thought, stopping dead in his tracks to stare at the paintings in amazement. _'There IS magic, and I love it. No one called me a freak so far, and everyone was very friendly - except for the Headmaster.'_

Suddenly, the black man's voice penetrated his mind. 'Harry, child, where are you? You don't have to worry, the Headmaster agreed that you may stay here at Hogwarts,' the man informed him.

However, somehow Harry felt too scared to reply. _'What if it's a trap, and they still send me back there?'_ he worried, as he quietly continued his stroll through the Hogwarts corridors, which were void of any students due to the fact that it was far beyond curfew.

All of a sudden, he heard a loud, cackling voice. "Ahh if that's not an icky little baby."

He hurriedly glanced around, horrified, only to see some kind of ghost hovering in the corridor in front of him. _'I didn't know that ghosts really exist. __I also want to be invisible to ghosts,'_ he thought, trying in panic to focus on his magic. Uncertain if it worked or the ghost was still able to see him, he quietly strode back in the direction, from which he had come. However, apparently, the ghost still knew about his whereabouts, because he suddenly emptied a bucket of a smelly green liquid over the child.

_'Oh no, what was that?'_ Harry wondered, noticing in horror that his body again began to feel achy. He walked back until he reached a small alcove, where he decided to lie on the floor and rest for a while, suddenly feeling tired and unwell.

He lazily stretched out on the floor, drifting off to sleep in a blink.

By the time he woke up, his surroundings were not as quiet as they had been, when he first came to the little alcove. Many feet could be heard walking through the hall. Harry instinctively cuddled against the wall that felt cool and soothing against his yet again burning skin.

HP

Harry was just about to drift off to sleep again, when a gentle woman's voice penetrated his mind. 'Hello little one,' it said, 'I'm Hogwarts. Did you wish to speak with me, or did you only just accidentally touch my wall?'

_'Hogwarts?'_ Harry wondered in disbelief. _'The school can talk to me?' _'I am so sorry that I disturbed you. I didn't know that I could speak with you by touching your wall,' he apologized, telepathically.

'Ah my sweet boy, you're not disturbing me. What would an old lady like myself do if not watch what's going on within my walls and occasionally speak with the heirs of one of my Founders? Maybe you're not aware of it, but you're the first heir of all four of my Founders. Therefore, I'm very happy to meet you.'

'I'm sorry Hogwarts,' Harry thought back, 'but I only learned about Hogwarts and that I'm a wizard last night, so I don't know anything about you.'

The castle chuckled. 'That's fine my boy,' she replied in a gentle voice. 'I've been built one thousand years ago by four powerful wizards and witches, who were your many times great grandparents.'

'Excuse me, Madame,' Harry asked with interest, 'how come that you're able to communicate with me?'

The old lady's voice sounded like a chuckle, again, before she replied, 'Because I'm full of old magic. And you're able to speak with me because of being the heir of my Founders.'

Harry remained quiet for an instant, pondering what the castle had told him. He did not understand what an heir was, but he knew better than to ask questions. His relatives had thoroughly taught him so.

'Little one,' Hogwarts finally broke the silence, 'I will tell you about myself and your ancestors at another time. I can sense that you're in dire need of help. You needn't worry, because the thickhead of a Headmaster finally agreed that you may stay here, plus as the heir of my Founders you're my rightful owner and I'm going to protect you from anyone including the Headmaster. I suggest that you make yourself visible to the house-elves. They'll be able to see to all your needs. If you're still scared, just make yourself visible to the three house-elves who are not bond to the Headmaster - Misty, Cicero and Malcolm. Misty is the Healer among the elves, she'll be able to help you in the first place. And Cicero and Malcolm are the elves of the guardians the Headmaster assigned you.'

_'What?'_ Harry thought wearily. He felt too confused and miserable to be able to understand everything of the old lady's rambling.

'Harry, please make yourself visible to Misty,' Hogwarts insisted. 'She'll be able to sense that you need her and will be able to find you. She won't give you away to the Headmaster.'

'Kay,' Harry replied, lazily, thinking, _'I want to be visible to Misty.'_

HP

Misty was not only Madam Pomfrey's personal house-elf, but she also had the function of the elves' Healer and as such was entitled to having her own office next to the hospital room, where she treated the sick elves. Currently, Cicero and Malcolm were visiting her in her office, discussing the matter of one small boy.

"Master Severus asked me last night to keep an eye on little Master Harry," Cicero informed his best friends, "because he's invisible, and he hopes that we'd be able to sense him, even if the elves who are bond to the Headmaster can't. I don't have a clue where he might be though, and I spent a large part of the night searching for him in vain."

"He must be invisible to us too," Malcolm said, thoughtfully. "Mistress Minerva called me last night and told me that she and Master Severus' have been made his guardian."

"Yes, that's correct," Cicero concurred.

The three elves remained quiet for a few minutes, deep in thoughts.

"I can sense him," Misty suddenly spoke up. "He needs my attention as a Healer. I'll go and fetch him." With that she popped away.

HP

Misty could sense the child in a small alcove and popped straight to the boy, who had drifted back to sleep in the meantime.

"Master Harry," she said in a soft voice, gently shaking the five-year-old's shoulder, only to stare at the boy in shock when he flinched back badly.

"I'm sorry sweetie," she cooed, "I didn't want to hurt you. I am Misty, the elves' Healer, and I came to make you better." She gave him a sharp look, before she informed him, "Someone hit you with an ugly potion, and I'm sure that was Peeves, the poltergeist of Hogwarts. He often does this to our small elves, when they're still not able to be fully invisible." Seeing that the child was looking at her in awe, obviously listening, she told him, "Little Master Harry, I'm going to take you with me to the elves' quarters within Hogwarts, where I can give you a few potions and heal you. Is that all right with you?"

Harry gave the strange creature a shy nod. _'She seems very friendly and she said she wants to make me feel better. I think it was her who came to the cat lady's place yesterday,' _he thought, feeling very cared for and happy for the first time that he could remember.

"Give me your hand," Misty instructed him, and Harry hesitantly put a small hand into the elf's that was not much larger than his own. "Now don't be afraid, little one, we're going to pop," Misty warned him, giving him a comforting smile.

HP

Before Harry had even comprehended the elf's words, he found himself in a room like the hospital wing. However, he realised that it was a different room, smaller than the hospital wing and equipped with smaller beds.

"You're in the hospital room in the elves' quarters," Misty informed him in a soft voice, before she proceeded to spell multiple potions into his stomach. Finally, she carefully laid her hand on his cheek and let a huge amount of her healing magic flow into his system.

Harry realised in surprise that he felt better than he could remember having felt ever before. 'Thank you so much for healing me,' he thought to the small elf, who looked at him with a combination of surprise and amazement.

"Little Master Harry is a very powerful wizard," she said, smiling. "If you feel well enough to get up, come with me to the elves' kitchen. I'll introduce you to my friends Cicero and Malcolm, and we're going to have breakfast together. All right, little one?"

_'I'm going to get breakfast?'_ Harry wondered in surprise, absentmindedly nodding his head.

With a wave of her hand, Misty transfigured his much too large hand-me-downs from Dudley into dark blue trousers with a green jumper and dark blue robes, before she motioned him to come with her.

Harry curiously followed Misty through the elves' quarters. On the way, Misty introduced him to Cicero and Malcolm, and the three elves led Harry into the elves' kitchen, where two elves immediately came over to take their requests.

Harry noticed, terrified, that the elves cast them curious looks, when the three elves ordered breakfast for four, and when Misty asked in her soft, gentle voice, if he could perhaps consider making himself visible to all elves or at least to Cicero and Malcolm, he felt inclined to obey.

"Thank you Harry," Cicero and Malcolm spoke up, when Harry slowly drifted into view for the two elves.

_'They're really nice,'_ he thought, as he enjoyed his first real breakfast apart from those on the rare occasions, when he had stayed at the cat lady's home overnight.

When they had finished eating, Misty looked from Harry to her friends. "Now Harry, what are we going to do with you?"

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for the overwhelming reviews, which caused my muse to be happy enough to update so fast!_


	3. Chapter 3

**The Wraith of Hogwarts**  
**by Healer Pomfrey**

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

* * *

While Harry anxiously looked from one to the other but remained quiet, Misty continued, "I suggest that Cicero takes you to Master Severus and Mistress Minerva. I believe that they're really worried about you."

"Especially Mistress Minerva," Malcolm threw in, firmly. "I know for a fact that she has always thought of Harry as of a grandson. Harry, she often baby-sat you, when your mother was still alive."

"Won't the Headmaster send me away?" Harry asked, frightened, remembering all too well what the old wizard had said on the previous evening.

"No sweetie, apparently he agreed that you may stay at Hogwarts and made Master Severus and Mistress Minerva your guardians," Misty explained for the umpteenth time, understanding that the matter did not easily penetrate an abused five-year-old's mind.

"Maybe we should teach Harry how to pop," Malcolm suggested, "seeing that he can already turn invisible and silent like an elf. If anyone wanted to harm him, he could just pop himself back here to one of us."

"That's a wonderful idea," Misty agreed. "If you have time now, I'd appreciate if you could teach the little one, as I need to check on my patients, and I'm sure that Mistress Poppy is going to call me soon."

"I shall teach Harry," Cicero offered and asked Malcolm to inform the boy's guardians that he was safe with the elves and that the elves would take him to see them both after the end of the afternoon classes.

HP

During the following hour, Cicero taught Harry how to pop himself through the castle and to make himself visible or invisible with the elves' method. Seeing that Harry cast him a questioning look, he explained, "You can try which way is easier for you, but I suppose that making yourself visible or invisible the elves' way doesn't afford as much magic as you need if you use wish magic, although you must keep in mind that you'll still be visible to all elves if you use our method."

_'Oh all right,'_ Harry thought. The five-year-old had already noticed several times that he felt incredulously tired after wishing something. He followed Cicero's advice only to realise that the elves' way was indeed easier. 'Thank you so much,' he thought to the elf, casting him a genuine smile. _'It's so cool that someone takes time just for me to teach me something,' _he mused, feeling happier than ever before.

When he voiced his thoughts, telepathically, upon the elf's questioning look, Cicero suggested, "Perhaps we can ask Master Severus if you may attend classes together with the elf children until you're old enough to attend Hogwarts as a student. Shall we go and speak with him about it later on?"

'Yes please,' Harry replied immediately. 'I'd so much like to learn something, but the Dursleys never sent me to playschool because I'm too stupid.'

Cicero looked at the child in shock. "Master Harry, you're not stupid at all. On the contrary, you're a very bright and powerful little wizard," he comforted the child, before he suggested returning to the elves' quarters for lunch. "I'll introduce you to the elf children. If you feel comfortable with them, you might want to think about making you visible for them, so that you can play together."

'I'd like that, if they don't mind me being there,' Harry thought back, feeling slightly unsure about making himself visible to multiple people.

"They won't," Cicero reassured him, smiling, before he let out a long sigh. "Harry, Master Severus told me what you relayed to him about your relatives and what they said to you." Seeing that Harry cast him an anxious look, he continued in a soft voice, "Everyone here at Hogwarts is different from your relatives. We're all magical like you, and please believe me when I say that the elves children will be very happy to see you, speak with you and play together."

'Then I'll just use the elves' method,' Harry replied, returning a small smile. _'I can always make myself completely invisible,'_ he thought, feeling very reassured by the fact.

"Now pop yourself back to the elves' quarters," Cicero instructed him, and Harry obeyed immediately.

_'Popping is easy,'_ he thought. _'That's good, then I can simply get away from the Headmaster if necessary. And being invisible and silent like an elf is great too,'_ he mused, feeling very grateful towards the kind elf, who had taught him so much.

Harry hesitantly followed Cicero into the elves' kitchen, where a group of children was just sitting down for lunch. He shyly tried to hide behind Cicero.

"Hello little ones," Cicero addressed the group, gently pulling Harry from behind himself, so that he came to stand in front of himself. "This is Harry. He's five, and he's going to live in the main part of the castle with Master Severus and Mistress Minerva. He'd like to study and play together with you all, and I want you all to be very nice to him and accept him as one of us, even if he looks differently. Can you do this?"

A multiple, loud "YES" penetrated Harry's ears, and before he knew what happened, a girl and a boy of about his age came and pulled him over to one of the tables.

"Come Harry, you sits with us. I is Nina, and this is Tony. We is both five too," the girl informed him on the way, smiling broadly.

HP

Harry could not remember having so much fun ever before in his life. The meal was better than anything that he had tasted before, and he was allowed to sit at the table together with the elf children, who urged him to eat as much as he wanted. They were all very funny and seemed to not mind that he looked differently from everyone else. _'I'm so happy,'_ he thought, as he allowed Nina to pull him with her to the playroom right after lunch.

"We plays for an hour and some others sleeps, but then the afternoon classes wills begin," the small elf girl informed him. "Will yous attends class with us?"

Harry shrugged, thinking that he had to ask Cicero. In fact, he had expected the elf to collect him again after lunch; however, none of the elves whom he knew could be seen anywhere.

"Harry, yous cans not talks?" Tony queried, giving him a concerned look.

"But I like yous, even if yous don't talks," Nina said warmly, lightly laying an arm around Harry, who was glad that he managed to not flinch back.

_'It seems as if they wanted me to speak,'_ he thought; however, as friendly as the elf children were, he felt too uncertain to suddenly begin to speak after getting used to being quiet for more than two years.

HP

Unbeknownst to Harry and his new friends, Misty, Cicero and Malcolm were standing in a corner of the room, watching the scene.

"He'll have to overcome this by himself," Malcolm whispered to the others.

"That won't be a problem. He'll manage. He's a very intelligent boy," Cicero threw in, observing the small boy in apparent amusement.

"But I'll try to speak with him, before you take him to Master Severus," Misty announced. "He needs to be reassured. Plus he needs some more of my healing magic."

Cicero stepped over to the trio of five-year-olds. "Harry," he addressed the boy, who gave him a frightened look. "Don't worry," he reassured him, smiling. "I didn't come to pull you away from your playmates. I have spoken with Master Severus, and he agreed that you may stay with the elves' children and also join their classes, while he's busy teaching his own classes - if that's what you want."

Seeing Harry nod and smile happily, Nina and Tony each grabbed one of his hands and pulled him out of the room. "Let's go classes," Nina informed him and babbled away, "We's happy that you're with us, Harry. There's many childrens of every ages, but we's the only five-year-olds, so now we's three of us."

"Yes, that's great," Tony agreed, smiling.

HP

Suddenly, the voice of the professor in the black robes penetrated his mind. 'Harry,' the professor addressed him in a soft voice. 'Is everything all right?'

'Yes sir. I am with the elves. I like it here,' Harry thought back, smiling, before he added, 'Thank you for asking sir.'

'No need to thank me, child. I'll see you later in the afternoon,' the professor replied. 'Cicero will bring you to me. Don't worry; everything will be all right.'

_'I hope so,'_ Harry thought, feeling very comforted by the kind elves and people who surrounded him. _'They're all freaks like myself,'_ he contemplated, happily.

HP

While during the mornings, all elf children from the age of three to eight were taught together, in the afternoons, they were divided by the age. The small children still had to learn to make themselves invisible or pop, and the older children followed their mentor elves in order to learn about the work, which the elves had to do after finishing their schooling.

In the mornings, Twinkle, the Headmaster's personal elf, was teaching the children, while in the afternoon, the five-year-olds were taught by random elves, who had time to teach them. On most days, the elves who were working for one specific professor were available, since their masters were still in class.

On this day, Cicero joined the trio and took them outside to play on an area within the grounds that was invisible and inaccessible for the human residents of Hogwarts. They played various games, and Harry enjoyed himself greatly. However, he could not bring himself to speak and was happy that the others hadn't questioned him about it again. When Cicero decided to take the children inside again, knowing that Harry's health condition was still not all right, he asked the three what they wanted to do during the last thirty minutes of their class.

"Let's draws a picture," Nina shouted in apparent excitement.

"Yes okay," Tony agreed immediately, giving Harry a questioning look.

_'We may draw pictures?'_ Harry thought in disbelief, looking from Nina to Tony and Cicero, before a huge smile spread over his face and he nodded eagerly.

An instant later, parchment and crayons appeared on the round, wooden table in front of him, and Harry hesitantly followed Nina's and Tony's example, taking a green crayon into his hand. _'I'm going to get to draw like Dudley,'_ he thought, excitedly, staring at the crayon in his hand in awe. He completely lost himself in happy thoughts.

His mind turned back to reality, when Nina suddenly asked, "Is you not goings to draws, Harry?"

Only now did he notice that the others were already engrossed in their drawings, and he hurried to make his first drawing ever. Just on time for the end of the class, he was finished and happily looked at his painting. There were three elf children on the grass, playing with a red ball like they had done earlier. The children were labelled 'Nina', 'Toni', 'Hari', and above their heads was a writing 'frends'. Realising that his new and first friends ever seemed to like his picture and hearing their reassurance that they were of course friends, Harry intensely stared at the ball that now began to jump from one child to the next to make the scene more realistic.

"You did that very well," Cicero commended the three small artists, before he told them that the class was over and he had to take Harry to Master Severus.

"You wills comes back tomorrow, won't you?" Nina queried, giving him a sharp look.

"Yes come back, we's friends now," Tony agreed with her.

Harry nodded eagerly, before he obediently followed Cicero to see Misty, before Cicero was going to take him to see his guardians in the main part of the castle.

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews! My muse loves them._


	4. Chapter 4

**The Wraith of Hogwarts**  
**by Healer Pomfrey**

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

* * *

Sighing in relief as the last class of the day was over, Severus Snape returned to his office, muttering to himself about the stupidity of the dunderheads, whom he had to teach during that afternoon. He lowered himself into the chair behind his desk, already letting pass the potions in front of his mind, which he had to brew for Poppy as soon as possible. _'Oh no,'_ he suddenly remembered, _'I won't be able to brew much tonight. Cicero's going to bring the Potter boy here. Oh well, maybe Minerva has time, considering that she wanted to become his guardian so badly.'_

_'You're the one to whom he chose to communicate through telepathy,'_ an annoying little voice spoke up from the back of his mind. _'He didn't speak with anyone else.'_

Severus let out a long sigh, mentally readying himself for an evening together with his meddling colleagues and an invisible five-year-old, just when Cicero popped up with a small sound.

HP

"Master Severus," the elf spoke up, bowing. "I brought little Master Harry to you."

"Thank you Cicero. I will take him from here," Severus replied, before he addressed the boy, whom he knew to be left from the elf due to the elf's hand that seemed to be tightly holding on to something. "Hello Harry, and welcome to your new home. Did you have a nice day?" he queried, quirking an eyebrow.

A faint 'Yes sir,' penetrated his mind.

Severus glanced at the elf, questioningly, wondering why he had not disappeared by now.

"I'm sorry Master Severus," Cicero apologized, before he asked, "Will it be all right if I fetch Harry for breakfast tomorrow morning, so that he can take the meal and attend classes together with the elf children? He has been together with our two five-year-olds, and I believe that they have become friends already."

"If that's what Harry wants, it's fine with me," Severus replied, not letting show his growing impatience.

'Yes please, sir,' he received Harry's thoughts.

"All right Cicero," Severus decided. "Thank you for taking care of Harry."

"It's a pleasure. He's a very amicable and intelligent boy," Cicero replied, before he turned to Harry and asked, "Why don't you show Master Severus your painting? I'm sure he'll like it. I'll see you in the morning then." With that he popped away.

Only when he arrived in the elves' quarters, Harry's telepathic reply reached him. 'Thank you Cicero.'

HP

_'Well, how am I supposed to care for an invisible five-year-old?'_ Severus wondered, inwardly groaning at the task ahead. He looked startled, when all of a sudden, a parchment manifested in front of him. 'Ah, Harry's painting,' he realised, studying the drawing with interest. "I see you have already become friends with Nina and Tony," he spoke up. "I'm very happy for you."

He almost sighed in relief when the child replied, even if it was telepathically.

'Yes sir. They're very nice.'

"That's good. Now Harry, let's go and have a look at your room first, will we?" he spoke up, looking in the direction in which he supposed the boy to be.

'All right sir. Thank you sir,' Harry's answer came promptly.

Severus walked in the direction of his private quarters but remained standing in the door frame to make sure that the child indeed left his office, when he motioned him to go ahead. As soon as he felt the child pass in front of him, he proceeded into the living room and showed the boy his quarters.

"The green door leads to the bathroom, the yellow one to our small kitchen, the blue door leads to my bedroom and the black one to my potions lab," he explained, before he continued in a stern voice, "I expect you to never set a foot into the rooms behind the blue and the black door without my permission."

'Yes sir,' the boy confirmed his understanding, and Severus nodded contentedly.

"Now the red door," he continued, "is the door to your room. He strode into Harry's room and motioned the child to sit on the bed, while he pulled over the chair from the desk for himself. "I wish to speak with you for a moment," he said, slowly. "First of all, I would like to introduce myself, as I believe that no one properly introduced us yesterday."

'Yes sir,' the boy threw in, causing Severus to nod contentedly, as he continued, "Very well, I am Professor Severus Snape, the Potions professor and Potions Master as well as the Head of Slytherin House. As long as we're alone or together with my colleagues, you may call me 'Severus', just not in front of other students."

'All right Severus,' Harry let him know his understanding.

"Has anyone told you about the four Houses of Hogwarts?" enquired.

'No sir,' the child replied quickly.

"There are four Houses, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, and we have a Sorting Hat that sorts all students into the House, which matches their character best. When you're eleven and old enough to become a student here, you will be sorted too," Severus informed the boy, before he explained about Professor McGonagall, Harry's other guardian. "Harry, both of us have known your parents very well. Your mother was my best friend, even though we were in different Houses at Hogwarts." _'And your father was my worst enemy,'_ he thought, but did not voice his thoughts for the boy's sake. "Anyway," he continued, "we're both happy to have you here, and we want you to know that what your relatives did and said to you is absolutely despicable. What exactly did they tell you about being invisible? I think I didn't properly understand what you told me yesterday." _'I'm going to let you repeat that sentence until you notice how ridiculous it is,'_ he thought, giving the child an expected look, seeing from a spot on the bed cover where the boy was sitting.

'No one wants to see or hear a freak,' Harry replied, as if he knew the sentence by heart.

"Why would you be a freak?" Severus queried, quirking an eyebrow.

'Because I sometimes do freaky things,' Harry thought to the professor, hesitantly.

"You're a wizard, Harry, and all magical children do accidental magic from time to time. That doesn't make you a freak. Do you understand me?"

'Yes sir.' The reply sounded confident, and Severus nodded in appreciation.

"Very well, child, so why would you need to be invisible?" he asked, however, did not receive a reply. "Harry, I am not urging you to make yourself visible. Don't misunderstand me. You may do this in your own pace and may decide by yourself when and to whom you wish to be visible or invisible. I just wanted to show you what rubbish it is that your relatives told you and that there's no need for you to remain invisible and quiet. I would be very happy to be able to see you and so would at least Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey. But as I said, the timing is up to you." He glanced at his wrist watch. "Now it's almost dinner time, and I suggest that we go and see if Proessor McGonagall is in her quarters, so that I can introduce her to you, and then we'll go and have dinner in the Great Hall."

HP

On the one hand, Harry felt very much reassured by the professor's kind words about making himself visible or not being his own decision. _'On the other hand, the professor is very kind to me and also became my guardian plus said he'd be happy to see me, so maybe I should make myself visible just for him,'_ he mused as he walked behind his guardian into the other professor's rooms.

"Minerva," Severus called his colleague, causing Harry to step behind the Potions Master in spite of knowing that he was invisible.

_'Oh she's the lady in the green robes, who came to the cat lady together with Severus,'_ Harry realised, smiling. _'I like her too,'_ he thought, feeling very happy to have two very nice guardians.

"Have you heard from Harry?" the old witch asked in what seemed to be concern that almost made Harry feel bad because of being invisible.

"Yes, he's here with me," Severus replied, smirking. "Harry, this is Professor McGonagall. Go over and let her know that you're here please.

"You may call me Granny or Minerva in private," the professor addressed him, smiling in his direction.

_'That's the professor of whom Malcolm said that she was like a granny to me when I was smaller,'_ Harry thought. Seeing that the older witch held out her arms for him to come to her, he hesitantly stepped over and allowed the professor to lightly hug him. _'It's all right,'_ he told himself, nevertheless feeling very much relieved when she released him.

"Very well then, shall we head to the Great Hall?" Severus asked and suggested taking the short-cut through Harry's room.

"Harry, will you please give me your hand?" Minerva requested. "The halls are going to be full of students now and we don't want you to get lost or hurt in the crowd.

Harry hesitantly slid his small hand into Minerva's and walked between his guardians, only to stop dead in his tracks when they entered the Great Hall. _'So many students,'_ he thought, horrified.

"When you've got used to living at Hogwarts, you may sit at the House tables and eat together with the students if you wish, but for the time being I suggest that you join us at the Head table," Severus whispered and motioned for Harry to sit between Minerva and himself.

Harry noticed, frightened, that the Headmaster was sitting right on Minerva's other side. _'Oh well, at least he can't see me,'_ he thought, trying to calm himself. He became distracted when Minerva placed a little of everything on his plate and just like the elf children instructed him to eat as much as he could.

Suddenly, one of the other professors spoke up, causing Harry to let his fork drop onto the plate in shock. "Minerva, is someone invisible sitting between you and Severus? It looks strange to just see the food being picked up and vanish mid-air."

Minerva gave Harry a comforting smile, before she rose from her chair. "Dear students, just in case you were wondering who was sitting between Professor Snape and myself, Professor Snape and I have taken in a five-year-old boy, who has so-far been abused and mistreated by his guardians. Due to the abuse, the child is very shy and wants to remain invisible and silent for the time being. His name is Harry and I wish all of you to be very kind to him. Thank you." With that she sat down again and continued eating.

All of a sudden, the Headmaster's voice penetrated his ears. "If Harry wants to grow up at Hogwarts, he should make himself visible and speak at least to the teachers here. Hogwarts is a dangerous place for someone invisible."

HP

If Harry had not popped away in panic, he would have heard that several of the professors sharply reprimanded the Headmaster for his harsh words.

"Albus, it's not as if the boy remained invisible just for fun," Minerva was the first to reply in a very upset voice. Turning to her right side, she said soothingly, "Don't worry, Harry; if you want to remain invisible, that's all right." Only when she reached out in order to pat the boy's hand, she noticed that the seat next to her was empty.

"Harry's gone," she said aloud, casting the Headmaster, who was just in a heated discussion about the child with Madam Pomfrey, Rolanda Hooch and Pomona Sprout, a furious look.

'Harry, where are you?' Severus thought to the boy, inwardly sighing in relief at the reply.

'In my room sir.'

"I'll go and look for him," Severus spoke up, glaring at the Headmaster, who was still in a fight with the Healer and her friends Minerva and Rolanda. He swiftly left the Great Hall, telepathically giving Minerva the information that Harry had returned to his room as he stepped out into the deserted corridor.

HP

_'Albus behaves like an absolute dunderhead,'_ he thought, as he strode through the corridor, in which Harry's room was situated opposite of the hospital wing. _'How could he say such a thing in front of the child?'_ He knocked at the door before he opened it and let himself in.

"Harry?" he asked, gently. However, there was no reply. "Harry, just ignore the Headmaster for the time being. He's a stupid old coot," he said in a soft voice, against better knowing. However, the child remained quiet.

_'Strange,'_ Severus thought, looking around in concern. _'Maybe he needed to use the bathroom,' _he finally thought, when he noticed that the wardroom door stood slightly open. _'It was closed when we came into the room earlier,'_ he recalled and, with a feeling of foreboding, crossed the room. _'But why would he be hiding in the wardrobe?' _he thought, grimly, and decided to call Cicero, recalling that his elf had been able to see the boy earlier.

"Yes Master Severus, if Harry makes himself invisible like an elf, I'm able to see him. However, if he wishes to remain unseen by everyone, not even the elves can see him," Cicero explained, before he allowed Severus to look at a picture in his mind.

Onxy eyes stared into those of the elf, and through the open door of the wardrobe, Severus could see Harry, who was curled up in a corner of the furniture, fast asleep with a small thumb tucked in his mouth.

If Minerva or Poppy had been in his place, they'd certainly have fawned over the fact how cute the child looked. However, Severus merely looked at the spot, where the boy seemed to be, in concern, before he pulled his wand and carefully levitated the child out of the wardrobe and into the bed. Harry never woke up, not even when he carefully pulled out the covers from under the boy and gently tucked him in. _'He must be exhausted. It was a long day for a five-year-old. I wonder if he's completely all right now,'_ he thought, resolving to let Poppy check on the boy, while he was asleep.

"Why is the boy able to make himself invisible like an elf?" he suddenly remembered to query, quirking an eyebrow.

Cicero looked remorsefully, as he replied, "I'm sorry Master Severus. We taught him how to make himself invisible, because it's easier for him than with wish magic, and we showed him how to pop himself through the castle, in case he needs to get away from the Headmaster quickly."

_'Ah, that's how he was able to return from the Great Hall without anyone noticing that he left,'_ Severus realised. "There's nothing to be sorry about. Thank you for teaching him," he replied to the elf and dismissed him, before he cast a spell over Harry that would alert him if the boy woke up or was in distress.

He had just reached the door and was about to step into his own quarters, when a sudden thought crossed his mind. _'Such small children usually have cuddly toys.'_ Smirking, he returned to the boy's side and conjured a green, stuffed dragon with onyx eyes. He placed a charm on the toy that caused the dragon to make roaring sounds at a push on its belly. Leaning over the child, he placed the dragon right next to where he assumed the boy's head to be and finally left the room in order to brew some much needed potions.

HP

When Harry's mind turned back to awareness, he found himself in a most comfortable bed, safely tucked into soft covers and his left arm wrapped around a green cuddly toy. _'Like Dudley's teddy,'_ he thought in absolute delight. _'Is that mine? And how did I get here?'_ he wondered, before he recalled what the Headmaster had said to him at dinner and that he had popped back into his room and crawled into the wardrobe. Somehow, he had felt safe in the small spot, as it slightly resembled his cupboard. _'The Headmaster really doesn't like me,'_ he thought, sadly, when he realised that it had probably been Severus, who had picked him up and placed him into the wonderful bed. _'Maybe it was him who gave me the stuffed animal,'_ he mused, somehow feeling loved and cared for.

He was pulled out of his thoughts, when Severus entered the room.

"Good morning Harry," his guardian said in a soft voice, giving him a questioning look. "Did you sleep well?"

'Yes sir,' Harry thought back to the older wizard. 'Thank you sir.'

The professor nodded. "You're welcome, child. Can you explain to me why you were asleep in your wardrobe last night?"

'It felt safe,' Harry replied, hesitantly, 'and I didn't know if I was allowed to sleep on the bed.'

"Harry, please forget everything that your relatives told you," Severus said, firmly. "Of course you may sleep in the bed. That's what the bed is for."

'Thank you for the teddy,' Harry relayed to the man. 'I love it. Dudley has one, but I never had one.'

Severus smirked. "You're welcome, child. This is not a teddy but a dragon though. It roars if you push its belly. If you rather prefer a teddy, I can transfigure it to a teddy though." He cast the boy a questioning look that turned into a half-smile, when the dragon suddenly began to roar.

_'He smiles,'_ Harry realised, feeling very happy. _'Should I make myself visible to him? He was so nice and even gave me the teddy.'_ He was just about to summon his wish magic in order to allow Severus to see him, when Minerva entered the room through the connecting door to her quarters.

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. My muse really appreciates them!_


	5. Chapter 5

**The Wraith of Hogwarts**  
**by Healer Pomfrey**

_All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.  
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes._

* * *

"Good morning Harry, good morning Severus," Minerva greeted the two wizards in a friendly voice, before she asked, "Are you ready to have breakfast in the Great Hall?"

Severus looked questioningly towards the bed, where the stuffed dragon was hovering mid-air. "Harry, do you want to have breakfast together with the elf children or with us?" he asked, gently.

'With Nina and Tony please, if I may,' Harry replied, telepathically.

Severus nodded. "Of course you may do so," he said and informed Minerva, before he called Cicero.

The elf promised to bring Harry back or just make him pop home after the last afternoon class, before he reached out for the boy's hand.

'May I bring my teddy?' Harry thought to the elf.

"Of course you may bring your teddy with you, Harry," Cicero replied, smiling at the stuffed dragon. "It's a wonderful teddy."

'Master Severus made him for me,' Harry informed the elf. 'He's really very nice. Do you think I should make myself visible for him?' he then asked, slightly hesitating.

"Harry, that's true, and I believe that it would be a wonderful idea to do so," Cicero reassured him, smirking.

HP

A mere instant before Cicero popped away with the child, Severus got a glimpse at a visible Harry. _'How strange. It must have been my imagination,'_ he thought, slowly massaging his temples in a faint attempt to get the headache in grip that had been bothering him since the previous night.

"Did you give him the stuffed dragon?" Minerva asked in clear amusement.

Severus smirked as he replied, "Well, he obviously needed one. He's calling it 'Teddy'."

Minerva chuckled, as she commented, "Severus, you're going soft." Her expression changed to a frown though. "You're lucky that he at least speaks to you, telepathically. I wished he'd do so with me."

Sensing that his colleague seemed to be very disappointed about the matter, especially considering how close she had been to the boy when he had been a baby, Severus said in a soothing voice, "He'll come around eventually. I'm sure he'll make himself visible and speak at least to the two of us soon." He unconsciously rubbed his forehead, resolving to try a stronger headache potion as soon as he could excuse himself.

"Severus, are you feeling all right?" Minerva queried, giving him a sharp look.

"Yes of course," Severus replied, inwardly groaning in annoyance. "It' just draining having to deal with an invisible child," he added, before he explained to his colleague what had happened the previous night.

"Why is Harry able to apparate within Hogwarts?" Minerva asked in apparent surprise.

"Because the elves have taught him," Severus informed her, smirking. "While Albus pushed him away, the elves saw fit to help the child and teach him useful knowledge."

"I see," Minerva said, pensively. "Severus, how is Harry's condition now? Since the elves won't have classes during the weekend either, I thought that perhaps we could take Harry out to the zoo or somewhere if he's well enough. Maybe if he gets a chance to get to know us, he'll open up to us as well."

"Yes, that's a good idea," Severus agreed, thoughtfully. "I had Poppy check on him last night, when he was asleep. She told me that she's still concerned about his lungs, especially as Misty, who apparently is not only her house-elf but the Healer of the elves, checked on Harry multiple times and told her that his breathing was laboured. Poppy said that Harry has to take it easy, but that Misty and she agreed to not keep him in bed but let him have as much fun as possible while keeping an eye on him." He let out a long sigh. "I'll ask Misty about his condition again tonight. Although I believe that before taking him anywhere else, we should go to Diagon Alley together in order to buy some clothes and perhaps books and toys for him first." _'And a Toddler's Potions Kit,'_ he silently added to the list.

HP

Harry thoroughly enjoyed himself attending classes together with the elves' children. While they learned general elves' knowledge with Twinkle in the morning, during the afternoon, Malcolm taught the three five-year-olds Writing and Maths, before he took them to several places within Hogwarts, mainly in order to show Harry more of Hogwarts. The small boy looked around in amazement as they entered the library and thoroughly enjoyed the view from the Astronomy tower. _'I like the Great Hall,'_ he thought, seeing in surprise that snow came through the ceiling.

"The ceiling is charmed to look like the sky," Malcolm informed the children, before he brought them to a small herb garden, which was situated on top of the roof of Hogwarts. "Only Mistress Poppy and Master Severus use to come here in order to pick up leaves or plants for Healing potions," Malcolm told the children.

_'This is great,'_ Harry thought, looking around in awe.

"Over there is Hogsmeade," Malcolm informed him, pointing to a near-by village. "I don't know if you've heard about it..."

"Next year, when we's going to bes six, we'll be alloweds to pops to Hogsmeade together with Twinkle," Nina interrupted the elf in apparent excitement. "They has lots of interesting shops there, like sweets shops and such. Ah, I can't waits to be six already."

Harry chuckled at the girl's enthusiasm. _'I'd like going there too,'_ he thought, feeling very happy with his new life.

Back in the elves' quarters, Malcolm allowed the children to play in the playroom, which was an indoor playground with slides, seesaws, merry-go-rounds, swings and other attractions, where the children could mix with the other children and play together or for themselves for the rest of the afternoon. _'This is too cool,'_ Harry thought and happily played together with his two friends until Misty came to collect him.

"Sweetie, I need to check on you and then take you back to Master Severus," she told him in a soft voice, nodding contentedly when Harry immediately abandoned what he had been doing and obediently came over to her.

He waved Nina and Tony good-bye and followed Misty out of the room. _'She's the nicest of the adult elves,' _he thought, _'although I like Cicero a lot too.'_ In fact, he felt relieved that it was Misty who had come to fetch him today, because he did not feel overly well and knew that the Healer elf would be able and willing to make him feel better. During the last hour, he had noticed that it was becoming difficult to breathe, and he knew that he had to make Misty be able to hear him like he had done the previous day.

"Oh my Harry, you have difficulties breathing today, don't you?" Misty immediately realised his problem, when she could hear him.

'Yes,' Harry thought to her.

"Then let's see what we can do to make you all better," Misty said in a tone that efficiently hid her concern for the small child and led him into her office.

A few minutes later, Harry was already feeling much better and smiled as he obediently laid his hand into Misty's, so that Misty could pop them back to his guardian. The thought _'I could just pop myself'_ crossed his mind, but he knew better than to question Misty's decision to take him home.

HP

Harry listened in amazement, when Severus told the elf that Minerva and he intended to take Harry to an alley and the zoo during the weekend. _'They're going to take me to places like Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon did with Dudley,'_ he thought, barely able to believe his luck. However, he was utterly disappointed when he heard Misty tell the professor that he could not go anywhere this weekend because he was running a slight temperature and had breathing problems.

"Harry must take it easy during the weekend," the Healer elf said in a no-nonsense voice. "He may play or you may teach him something if he feels up to it, but he should not leave the castle before his condition improves. I'll come by in the morning to check on him, or would Master Severus prefer if Mistress Poppy came to check on Harry?"

"No Misty," Severus replied in a soft voice. "Poppy told me that you can help him much better, because you're able to hear him while she can't. Therefore, I'd appreciate it if you came to check on him."

"Oh no," Harry thought, terrified. "Now Severus and Minerva will think that I'm a burden and won't want me to live here with them anymore. I better make myself invisible again."

HP

All the while he had been talking to Misty, Severus had observed Harry from the corner of his eyes, very relieved to see that the boy seemed to feel comfortable enough to be visible in front of himself. However, all of a sudden, the child vanished from the sight. Only from Misty's hand that was still holding Harry's did he know that Harry was still present.

"Harry, what happened?" he asked with a combination of concern and annoyance. "There's no need to make yourself invisible again. I was so happy to be able to see you, and I just know that Minerva would appreciate it too."

_'No, he'll realise what a burden and a nuisance I am,'_ Harry thought according to what his aunt had instructed him for years and remained quiet.

"Maybe Harry should take a nap before dinner," Misty suggested, before she took her leave.

"Very well Harry, let's go to your room so you can lie down for a bit before dinner," Severus took Misty's advice, surprised when he felt the child reach out for his hand. He made the boy lie down on his bed. "Harry, would you like to sleep for a while, or do you want me to tell you something about potions or magic or whatever you want?" he queried, quirking an eyebrow.

'Please tell me about potions,' Harry replied, telepathically. Ever since Severus had told him that he was the Potions Master the previous evening, he had been wondering what exactly Potions was.

Knowing that Harry would not be able to comprehend his usual speech for the first years, Severus patiently told the child about potions in general as well as ingredients, the brewing and the use of potions. From the occasional telepathic replies did he know that Harry was listening intensely.

'Thank you so much for telling me about Potions, sir,' Harry finally thought to him,

"You're very welcome, child," Severus replied in a soft voice. "If you feel well enough, I can teach you to brew fruit drops tomorrow."

However, he did not receive a reply, before Minerva entered the room an instant later. "Severus, Harry, are you ready to head to the Great Hall?" she enquired. "Dinner is going to commence soon."

"Very well Harry, let's go," Severus addressed the child; however, not only did the boy not reply, but from the curves of his bed covers, the professor could see that he made no move to get up.

"Maybe Harry's asleep," he told the Scottish lioness and informed her about Misty's instructions. "Minerva, please excuse me from dinner tonight," he decided. "I'm going to stay nearby in case Harry wakes up, and I'll have dinner together with him later on." For an instant, he pondered if he should tell his colleague that Harry had been visible earlier, however, decided against it, considering that he didn't even know why the boy had turned invisible again. He cast a spell on the child that would alert him when Harry woke up and returned to his office in order to do some work. _'Who knows how much time I'm going to have during the weekend,'_ he thought, smirking.

HP

Harry was so exhausted from playing with his friends - something that he was not used to at all - and from his poor condition that he slept through the night. When he woke up, he felt considerably better. _'Oh no, I fell asleep when the professor was still talking to me,' _he thought, horrified, absentmindedly taking in how the bright light of the full moon fell into the room through the charmed window right next to his bed. Before he, however, could follow dark thoughts, Severus stepped into the room. _'As if he knew that I just woke up,'_ Harry thought in surprise and quickly thought to the man, 'I'm sorry for falling asleep, while you were still talking to me. I was so tired.'

"Ah Harry, that's fully all right," Severus replied in his usual, soft voice. "Are you feeling better this morning?"

'Yes,' Harry thought back. _'I wished we could go to the zoo,'_ he thought to himself but knew better than to voice his thoughts.

"Shall we have breakfast in my quarters this morning?" Severus suggested, giving Harry a questioning look.

'Yes sir, thank you sir,' Harry replied, seemingly hesitating.

"Very well." Severus nodded contentedly. "Afterwards, i want Misty to check on you, and if she deems you well enough, I thought that we could perhaps brew fruit drops together, if that's something you'd like to do."

'I'd like that very much,' Harry replied, smiling at the professor without considering that the older wizard was unable to see his smile.

HP

Misty allowed Harry to brew fruit drops together with his guardian, and Harry happily followed the professor into his lab.

The Potions Master carefully gathered the necessary ingredients, pointing out to Harry what exactly they needed and where to find it. "It's important that you remember exactly how the ingredients are organised," he told the child. However, when everything was ready so that they could begin preparing the ingredients, he suddenly thought, _'It's too dangerous having an invisible child brew potions.'_ He remained pensive for a few minutes, before Harry's question penetrated his mind.

'Sir?' Harry enquired, 'is something wrong?'

Severus let out a long sigh, before he replied, "Yes child. I'm sorry, but it would be too dangerous to allow you to brew. Since I can't see you, I wouldn't be able to realise it early enough if you had any problems, nor would I be able to pull you away on time if necessary," he explained, when a sudden thought crossed his mind. "Harry, is Cicero able to see you?"

'Yes sir,' Harry confirmed.

"Very well, then I will call Cicero, so that he can help me keep an eye on you," Severus resolved and called his elf.

HP

_'Maybe I should make myself visible again for Severus,'_ Harry mused, feeling very guilty at the thought that Cicero had to spend the time in the lab just because he was a coward and remained invisible. When the elf showed up and greeted him as friendly as usual, Harry made a decision and wished himself to be visible for Severus.

"Harry," Severus spoke up in apparent surprise, and the edges of his mouth pulled slightly up. "It's good to be able to see you. Now are you ready to commence?" he asked and began to meticulously show the boy how to prepare each of the ingredients.

Harry enjoyed himself greatly. At first, he had expected the brewing of potions to be similar to cooking, even if he had not voiced this thought to the Potions Master; however, he noticed soon what the differences were.

Severus on the other hand did not only feel relieved to be able to see the child, but he also realised that Harry paid attention to what he taught him and seemed to be very adept at brewing. Half-way through the brewing process, Severus dismissed Cicero, as he was well able to supervise the now visible child by himself.

Too soon for Harry's liking, they had finished the fruit drops and filled the liquid into moulds, where it had to remain for a few hours, before he could try the drops.

'Thank you so much,' he thought to his guardian. 'This was a lot of fun.'

"You're welcome Harry," Severus replied, smirking. "Now I suggest that I take you to Minerva, so that you can stay with her for a few hours, while I'm going to brew some potions for the hospital wing," he added, staring at the child in surprise when the boy's expression suddenly turned sad.

_'He doesn't want me anymore,'_ Harry thought, sadly. _'I'd so much love to help him, but probably I'm just a burden to him.'_

_tbc..._

_Thank you so much for your kind reviews. My muse appreciates them greatly. I am sorry for the delay (oh well two weeks...), but I was busy writing my Advent's Calendar story that is going to commence soon._


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